science... >> i'm standing in a tropcal wind storm... >> ...can effect and surprise us... >> wow, these are amazing... >> techknow, where technology meets humanity! only on al jazeera america isil fighters launch a string of attacks in iraq killing at least 20 soldiers. this is al jazeera live from london. also coming up african leaders call for presidential elections to be postponed after weeks of violence. back to school. nepal opens make shift classes for its students a month after its devastating earthquake. >>reporter: on australia's gold coast, a group of people from the north of england have come

here because they think some of the issues facing them are shared by australia's aborigines. fighters from the islamic state of iraq and the levant have launched a string ofcks on iraqi military targets in anbar targets killing at least 20 soldiers in fallujal. 13 soldiers died in a rocket attack east of rhamadi. here's the latest from baghdad. >>reporter: with all of these attacks across anbar province we're seeing isil once again using car bombs to devastating effects. iraqi security forces have a problem. military analysts say security forces simply don't have the re recon

recon that they need. this is something that isil are now becoming very good at. with the car bombs they're splitting iraqi forces in half and are now able to attack military bases as well as civilian and military targets. we're also seeing shelling of the air base where the majority of the iraqi security forces are based and that's where they're reinforcing their troops. that's not to say that iraqi security forces have not had some successes. they've taken over towns and villages within anbar province and are using them as staging posts after they're cleared of isil fighters. they're also attacking the outskirts of rhamadi from the north, south, and east in order to cut off isil supply lines. we've seen an escalation in violence in the last 24 hours though a video which is said to show shia militias carrying out

arossties in -- militias say he's an isil fighter. it's unclear whether the fighter was alive at the time. isil says they've taken over key villages near aleppo. they're taken one that's strategically important because it is on the roads that leads to opposition strongholds. 16 people also reported to have been killed in government shelling. syria says more than 25 civilians, mostly women and children have been killed in an explosion at a hospital. barrels of fuel reportedly caught fire in the hospital in the city. the cause of the fire is not yet known. it happened while families were waiting to have their children

vaccinated syria's war has killed more than 220,000 people and the united nations says more than 10 million people are going hungry and it's proving hard to help people. >>reporter: this urban farmer is helping to provide food for a few of the many hungry people in syria. it was set up in an opposition-held part of aleppo eight months ago. around 30 families get a regular supply of eggs and others can buy into a cooperative that make a living off the farm. >> the aim of this project to achieve some security for aleppo is a means of protection. >>reporter: it's funded by a u.s.-based charity and they provide what they call smart aid. finding the most effective and impactful way to help syrians based on their request.

>> it creates food security and the kind of food security and also general life security for the people that we serve. and that's why we are so passionate about giving this kind of smart aid. >>reporter: people without food in war zones are vulnerable not just to malnutrition but exploitation as well. in this video al-nusra hands over food to people as a campaign to win them over. it's providing food to 2.5 million people in syria every month but because of the war, many areas are inaccessible to the world food program including all of palmira and other towns. the world food program also can't get into other parts and is only able to reach some people near aleppo. some people are so desperate to find food they resort to eating whatever is available. like in yarmouk where they're

been cut off from food supply and aid. >> we're seeing food being used as a weapon of war. parties are confiscating food production and distribution services including farms and markets. the second is that they are impeding access to humanitarian aid. >>reporter: the farmers inpo with the help of international donors have created something for sustainable. there are more than 4,000 people who need more food in this neighborhood alone. and at least with this project, a growing number of people know where their next few meals are coming from. caroline malone al jazeera. in yemen, more heavy fighting in the southern city of taiz. along the border with saudi arabia a saudi border guard has

been killed and seven others wounded in shelling by houthi rebels saudi arabia's foreign minister has accused iran as being the only country interfering in affairs in the middle east. he was during a joint news conference with the egyptian foreign minister. >> we reject the negative behavior of iran and we also reject iran's support of terrorism. we look forward to a day when we can have normal relations with iran and this depends on how iran behaves and will stop interfering in other country's affairs east african leaders are officially calling for the president of brundi to delay next month's elections after a month of violent unrest. at least 30 people have been killed in demonstrations since he announced he was standing for a third time. something his opponents say violate the constitution.

we are now live in the capital there. what are we hearing from that summit of east african leaders and has the president reacted? >>reporter: well the worded it very carefully and a lot of people here seem to think that they were not tough on the president at all. they've urged him to delay the elections by about a month and a half. they've urged him to disarm the militia, the ruling party that's been accused, opposition members are victimizing them. they've also asked all parties to sit down and meet and agree to find an amicable way out of this crisis. so far the president has not especially commented on the request by leaders. >> and how happy is the opposition about calls to postpone elections? >>reporter: some of them are not happy. they're saying the issue is not the election and it's not about

the date. the fact that you want them delayed or postponed is just prolonging the process. they say the main issue is they don't want to violate the constitution. they're still threatening to take to the streets on monday and they say despite the heavy police and security presence on the ground. but they're also saying that they fear that this delay will only give more time to basically use whatever force he has to try and silence them. so a lot of people concerned right now. they're not happy that the elections are being delayed. they say that was not the issue that they were fighting for. >> okay. thank you very much. in nepal, school children have begun to return to classes in some parts of the country. it's been months since and earthquake killed more than 8,000 people. teachers are working hard to make lessons as normal as possible. >>reporter: it's a big morning for these two. after 40 days it's time to take

out uniforms pack school bags remember how to tie a tie. >> i want to play board games and hide and seek with my friends. i want to hang out and find out what happened to the houses. >>reporter: finishing touches come from their mother along with reminders not to panic if there's another earthquake. >> i know they'll be safe at school but i'm still worried. my mind is not at ease today rob the family's house was one of many to crumble here on the outskirts of kathmandu. staff reassure students that their building is safe but the teachers were taken no chances. earthquake drills practiced and a welcome chance for a laugh with friends. across nepal, schools were marking an important day. here the principal welcomed his students far more than he was expecting and he offered reassurance they were safe out

here in the open if the ground shook it would be just like dancing. >> while they're at school they're engaged in activities like this and our focus is to help them overcome fear and trauma. >>reporter: classes were being held inside huts put together in less than two weeks by the staff and two nongovernmental organizations. all of this is happening pretty much in the shadow of the original school building which is just over here. it was damaged in the quake. the cracks are visible but they're worse inside. that red sticker means it's condemned. the principal wants the government to act as quickly as possible to bring it down to prevent any further threat to the children who will now be coming to this school. 8,500 schools across the country have been damaged beyond repair. many are not in a position to put on lessons in games but all are being asked to do something today to show that the earthquake only interrupted and didn't destroy the education

that their children deserved. still ahead, hundreds more migrants arrive in italy in a week that has seen more than 4,000 people rescued from boats in the mediterranean. and the u.s. secretary of state cut short his visit to europe after falling off his bike and breaking his leg. nd breaking his leg.

13 soldiers have died in a rocket attack by isil fighters on an air base east of rhamadi.

eight car bombs were also set off in fallujah killing at least 20 soldiers east african leaders have called on brundi leaders to delay the presidential election after a month of unrest >> and school children have begun to return to classes in some parts of nepal. it's been a month since an earthquake killed more than 8,000 people there. the past week has seen the largest number of migrants crossing the mediterranean so far this year when more than 4,200 people were rescued from boats at sea. the most recent arrivals were brought into sicily sunday morning by the italian navy. 454 migrants on board along with 17 bodies of those who died in the crossing. we're now in italy where one new arrival has been working for three years to get here.

>>reporter: it's a moment she's been longing for. the chance for a new life away from the turmoil she was born into. her journey started across the sea, 4,000 kilometers away. it took her nearly three years to reach the shores of europe. it's a world away from where we first met in an detention center in libya a few weeks ago. she's the girl in back in white and orange tense and silent. there were no smiles at the time. >> the prison was awful. we knew nothing. where we were for how long i was thinking all the time what will i do? where will i go? how. the day you came to visit, we were happy. we were hoping you could get us out but the next day they took us to tripoli and put us in a building until we paid.

then a smuggler paid the guys in the prison and then we left. first we walked in the sea the water was up to my chest. then we got on a small boat and then reached the big boat. >>reporter: on her third day in italy, we met again. by the sidewalk in front of a reception center for newly arrived migrants. with her, some of the other girls who were also held now travel companions. they met along the journey through the sahara desert and are now making their baby steps together in europe. one is seven-months pregnant and her final destination is holland. some are still held in tripoli. they don't have money to pay for the bribe to be freed or for the smugglers to make the sea crossing.

soon she'll be on the move again. she wants to reach her cousin who's already in denmark. >> i found europe just like a dreamt of it. my country is nice. if there was no war, i would have stayed there but there is no work. i still don't know how i will travel but there are other people. i might travel with them. then i will study. first learn the language and then work. any jobs whatever will give me some money -- a curb while

cycling in the french alps. he was due to travel to madrid later and then go to paris to meet the iraqi prime minister. he's now being treated in geneva and is said to be resting comfortably. so he had a packed schedule on his agenda. how will he deal with that now? >>reporter: well obviously the meetings that he was going to have with the spanish officials in madrid have obviously been postponed indefinitely. but the secretary of state was also supposed to meet with foreign ministers in paris on tuesday to talk about the on going fight against isil. he's going to take part via telephone from the hospital in boston where he's flying sunday night so his surgeon can look at his right femur and decide

whether or not he can have his leg put in a cast or whether he might need to have surgery in order to stabilize the bone. it happens to be the same leg where he had a hip replaced a few years ago and so they're taking this extra medical precaution as it were to make certain that john kerry's gate and ability to get around won't be affected by this bone break. >> and he's kind of a bit of an action man. is it a bit of a blow to his image? >>reporter: well let's put it this way. any athlete knows that if you're out pushing yourself you're probably going to have a higher chance of being injured than if you were sitting at home on the couch watching television and eating crisps. but that said he has been known as action man as it were. in fact he was mocked when he was running for president back in 2004 because one of the things that the secretary of state enjoys doing is wind surfing. it's a very challenging sport

and a very physical sport but there were some in the republican party who thought that wasn't manly enough for someone who would be sitting in the oval office. it doesn't matter because he still wind surfs to this day. he's known as an active cyclist and a hockey player though he recently joked that his security detail won't let him participate because of the danger of high sticking. what the secretary is doing as a 71-year-old man is trying to balance a very very vigorous diplomatic travel schedule busy meeting schedule with the need to remain as healthy as possible so i don't know that it's going to be a huge bit of damage to his image but rather he is going to find himself having a bit of trouble getting around at least for the short term. >> okay. thank you very much indeed. china has reacted angrily to

u.s. criticism to construction on reclaimed land on the south china sea. it's dominated a meeting on regional security in singapore that came to a close on sunday evening. china has threatened to establish an air defense zone around the disputed waters. >>reporter: the south china sea, rich in marine resources and minerals a third of the world's shipping passes through here. the shoreline is shared by eight countries, each with claims to the sea, many of which overlap. china's claims are the most extensive and include the vast majority of the sea. but it's these two small sets of islands that are the focus of territorial spats and china's ambitious land reclaimation program. satellite imagery shows

construction including a large runway harbors, and sea walls. but it's to the south that the construction has been most extensive. china says it's used the search and rescue and also will be used to accommodate long range fighter planes. >> i want to reample these constructions are well within the scope of china's sovereignty and are justified. they do not pose a threat to another country or affect the freedom of navigation. >>reporter: chinese aircraft recently challenged a u.s. surveillance plane flying over the grounds in china's skies fuelling fears the chinese government plans to set up an air defense identification zone meaning all aircraft military or civilian would have to ask permission to enter the area. european leaders have reacted angrily to russia

imposing travel bans on 89 eu leaders and military officials. russia says it's responding to eu sanctions imposed last year over its role in ukraine. >>reporter: the eu is calling it arbitrary and unjustified. the 89 are from over a dozen eu countries. some high profile, others less so. the german foreign minister expressed his displeasure in ukraine on saturday. >> at a time when we're trying to diffuse defuse a dangerous situation in europe this does not help that. >>reporter: italy's prime minister and the leader of a liberal block in the european parliament and the head of sweden's national tax authority.

>> what we understand is that it's some kind of a response to the eu's own list but that one is transparent and above all it gives the reason why certain names are on the list. >>reporter: russia's ban on these europeans is a cold war style retaliation and it stems from the eu's decision to impose its own sanctions and travel bans on russians it holds responsible for destabilizing eastern ukraine. some have noticed the russian list concentrates on eu states particularly vocal in their criticism in moscow and as such could be an attempt by the russians to exploit internal differences. >> in a nutshell drawing a map on this list you'll see the map of russia's friends and russia's opponents inside european union. so it's very selective actually. >>reporter: tensions in eastern ukraine remain high.

there's sporatic shelling and russia is conducting large scale exercises on ukraine's border again and the minsk talk agreements are still not effective and russia's allies are gearing up for another round of fighting. russia admits there's another list of banned u.s. officials but that's yet to be officials. a social media campaign is calling for a boycott of united airlines after a muslim woman accused them of discrimination. she says a flight attendant refused to serve her an unopened soft drinking saying it could be used as a weapon and then later served another passenger an unopened can of beer. it's white arm band day --

every year residents in bosnia commemorate the atrocity by wearing white arm bands two cultures with seemingly little in common are being brought together. the aboriginal people of australia are sharing their thoughts and experiences with visitors in the other side of the globe. andrew thomas reports from australia's gold coast on a unique cross cultural link up. >>reporter: one community lost its land independence, and identity when colonialists arrived more than 200 years ago. another lost much of its identity and independence when 30 years ago government action took away that community's industry and purpose. but is the comparison between the two too much of a stretch? >> i thought, hell no is this

going to work. >>reporter: the he is matthew johnson, a british academic who has brought people from a former mining town in england to an aboriginal town in australia >> we have to understand historical context of the u.k. which may give aboriginal australian people cause to think differently differently. >>reporter: some of those in the north of england says johnson have suffered oppression and discrimination on the basis of their identity just as aborigines have in australia and now they face a stigma because of handouts. >> worst part is not wanting to be unemployed. wanting to earn your income instead of going up and begging for it every fortnight.

>>reporter: what he learns from them and what they learn from him will feed into the academic report. >> it's a completely different situation but nevertheless, there's still poverty in north england and how do those people cope with it. >>reporter: they have taken part in demonstrations calling for indigenous rights and have been taken to sites of cultural significance. in june australians will travel to england for the other end of the exchange. the hope is that if parallels can be found when it comes to the issues facing communities which on the face of it have very little common then parallels can also be found when it comes to solutions but one community's experience can inspire the others. the costs of this exchange are being met by universities and public grants but it's not a free holiday says johnson. the exchange works out cheaper than most academic conferences

and this is real life research exploring cross cultural parallels with those on the sharp end of change. more for you on our website at any time at aljazeera.com.